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RPlog:A Second Attack
Not quite the step-up from his recent digs, but it is enough of an improvement that Gustaf feels much more in place now that he has chosen the Sandman Hotel. The man's clothes remember the same as ever, though they are somewhat more presentable now that they have been laundered a few times. It is a beautiful early evening, and the sun's illumination has been replaced by the neon lighting of this sector of New Alderaan, the man can now be found wandering, enjoying his newly-regained freedom now that he has been let out of the New Republic's hands. All in all, a rather tolerable jail compared to the ones he has frequented recently. A rather plain figure adrift in all this flash and fancy, Foerga seems oblivious to such a fact. Instead, she seems more interested in the grand facades of buildings showing to view. In fact, there is a definite gleam in her eyes upon seeing a casino that hadn't tried to kick her out yet. E'en upon seeing such a view, however, she does not traverse down that path. Rather, she heads towards a rather geometrically designed garden and sits down on a plush bit of grass snatched between a rather odd snaking ivy of chartreuse and a rather striking large flower of magenta. Once seated, and checking to make sure she won't cause any more accidents, she leans back onto her hands and just watched the paling hues of the sky as it tucks in for the night. Walking out of one of the theatres that lines the street, Ranma shakes her head slightly as she turns back to regard the building, "Well that was a waste of two perfectly good hours of my life that I will never get back. Seriously? Who comes up with that drivel." Shaking her head again, she stuffs her hands into the pockets of her pants as she begins to walk down the street, mumbling to herself about listening to reviews next time. Galatea isn't entirely sure why she's in this area of the city, the winds of fate having driven her legs to bring her out of her normal hunting grounds and into the unknown, but she has intended to make the most of it. The combat medic is not garbed in anything related to her profession, the wounds she carries hidden away by the acid cured, olive tinted duraweave suit and a small collection of equipment. At the moment, her face remains exposed to the world and her hair flits about freely in the cool evening air. Idly, Galatea steps about from shadow to shadow along the edges of the streets, her teeth grinding monotonously and her eyes darting to and fro in a seemingly random manner. The energy in the air was intoxicating and she found her senses on edge in an almost animalistic excitement. With any luck, anticipation would not be greater than reality. The early evening on Ord Mantell (which, still, ironically amuses Lynae for having been short-named for 'Ordinance') finds Lynae wandering along one of the city streets of New Alderaan. Having once been exiled to this planet, in protective custody awaiting a trial that is, she is rather familiar with the city layout and where many of the local vendors have unique and unusual shops. She searches, afoot, for one specific herbalist while one of her guards walks alongside. For once, Kalna is done with her business and simply out to enjoy herself, and let the breeze blow against her cheeks and ruffle her hair. She sits on the beach for a short while, enjoying the sunset, but as the most spectacular colors fade she turns to make her way towards the shopping districts, her hands shoved deep in her pockets and a bounce in her step. Given the recent week's events, one might forgive Gustaf for occasionally looking over his shoulders, especially in an area as crowded and chaotic as this. It is on one such glance about that he psots two figures. The first is of a certain woman who attempted to play the Doctor for him, the other of a rather foolhardy person who tried to drag a certain Jedi out of harm's way. And given that, somehow, they are close to each other, he heads towards them, Ranma the first to be reached though a hand is raisedto wave to the doctor should she look at him. "Thank you again for the other day, I did not get the chance to say that before they dragged me away.", the reddened bandage wrapped around his upper left arm proof enough of that. For a moment, he seems on the edge of saying something until a stalking figure is caught from the corner of an eye, and little more than a moment's glance at it is needed before he reaches into his coat and from it his holster's bindings are loosened, everything focused on Galatea, for it is she he is looking at, should she be revealed as a threat. Foerga eyes the last rays of light in the sky and smiles, before looking over at the crowd slowing starting to gather in the night. Blinking owlishly, she watches the patterns coalesce out of the mass of beings and she goes into 'watch' mode, casually. Lost, rather alone, and down to her last penny, this girl sits in the damp grass and smiles in glee, impish light gleaming in her eyes as the beings form their little dances, oblivious to the pattern they create. Suddenly, though, there is a doubled distraction. A woman looking vaguely familiar coming up on a herbalist, and her overly active senses noting the well dressed man reaching for a weapon. "Blast." she growls out, suddenly not a poetic word in her speech as she jumps up and acts the loon once more. Waving her hands crazily, she yells out to the woman, "Hey! Long time no see! Hey, remember me!?!" Suddenly she is dancing a little jig as she comes closer to the woman with her armed entourage, smiling sunnily up to Gunter number 1. "Hi Handsome... care to test the logical odds on my coming out of this unharmed, unthreatened and not locked up in the loony bin?" Galatea isn't particularily perceptive beyond the average human and fails to see or feel any notice by Gustaf - or anyone else currently present. Frankly, she has no idea who he is and to her he's just another face in a sea of faces. Oblivious, Galatea continues languidly sliding her way between people, eyes wide to take in as much detail as possible. The hairs on the combat medic's neck bristle as the activity in her nerves begins to rise subtlely in concert with her steadily increasing stimulation. For the moment, she continues to remain on the main causeways soaking in the ambiance of the night life. Lynae is just getting her bearings, having noticed the small hand-lettered sign over the door to the shop she'd been trying to find, when she sees and then hears the dancing, jigging, yelling loonish honey brown haired woman waving at her. Lynae frowns slightly, letting her mind tick through names, faces, places, reasons, which is a bit of a long process sometimes, and she waves off the guard that's stepping rather abruptly in front of her. "No, it's okay," she says quietly, still frowning and says, "I know you. Where do I know you from?" she asks next, jolting at her memory with a subtle kick to her still active gray matter. At first, Ranma doesn't notice the man walking towards her, or any of the other people for that matter. Her quiet mumbling having gone from the topic of the show she had just watched and how it had been waste of time and credits to looking to her left and conversing with someone, though no one is walking next to her. Her conversation halts as she suddenly takes in the whole scene and notices the man reaching for a weapon as well as Lynae. Holding up a hand, she shakes her head before looking to her left, "nudd nee raadno si bri ood rogana kaaad oova chaa" She speaks the language she had been brought up with being as it was the ghost of her adoptive father she had been seeing of late. One of the beings walking past her gives her a quizical look for making a rude comment of his own. Sighing she switches back to Basic, " It wasn't you I was talking to. It was... Nevermind. " Turning her attention back to the scene she walks up to the man, " Don't I know you from somewhere? " It's hard not to notice a jumping, dancing, waving loon. It also makes it difficult to miss the target of the loon's attention: Dr. Cra- err, Lynae. A crooked grin crosses Brin's features but she doesn't approach the group yet, standing back instead to let her eyes rake over the crowd and take in the scene. Where there's the doctor... there's generally trouble. She has noticed a trend on that front. When's the last time she saw the Doc when someone /didn't/ end up getting shot? She really can't recall. Might have been during her surgery... Slowly but surely, Gus begins to come to the conclusion that that isn't likely someone sent to take him out, but for safety's sake he does not put the safety back on his blaster just in case he has to use it quickly. His hand is retrieved, and casually along with other stowed in his old spacer's jacket's pockets. There's nothing about him that would say well-dressed to most, well-groomed certainly but his clothes would leave much to be desired. "The Goodman's Tavern, the firefight, remember? The one where you tried to save that woman with the...with the odd sword." Foerga for her part is looked at with caution, not quite a threat, but what else could she be, certainly not as much of a ditz as she portrays herself being. Seeing no immediate threat (though somehow Kalna would rather /see/ the threat, so she could at least know what was coming), she makes her way towards the group, choosing to greet Draygo first. "Kell!" she calls out casually, reaching out to clap the man warmly on the upper-arm. "The doc keeping you busy, I take it? How many people have shot at her today? Or should I ask about the last hour or so, to give you a more manageable number?" Now, if Lynae were empathic and could take part in this silent debate as to whether or not she is (or, conversely, is NOT) a trouble magnet .. she'd be forced to note that she gets shot more often when she's on this planet than anywhere else. save for.. no, this planet, and no where else. But .. "Yes. A connundrum wrapped up in a mystery, shaded with enigma, colored with confusion and chaos and translated with the most cryptic of cyphers.." she murmurs in return. She doesn't need to glance at Draygo to know precisely where he is in relation to her and she nods, "Aye, he is at that. Foe?" she asks, reiterates, slowly starting to peg the accent and the speaker. Before she can say more, Kalna merges with their little conversing knot of individuals, and Lynae even seems to relax a bit now that she's recognized yet another person in the immediate area - along with certain flame haired pilot. Recollection takes a few moments to dawn on Ranma as she looks the man over for a few moments. As it starts to dawn on her, she turns her head slightly as if listening to someone else talk before returning her eyes to the man and nodding, "Ah yes. You're the man who almost got gunned down by and angry Rodian and his goons." She grins a little and nods her head slightly, "So what was that all about anyway?" As she begins to regain some more perception on the area surrounding her, she begins to notice a few more people that she recognizes and offers them a bit of a wave. Galatea eventually circles 'round and begins to make her way towards the tramway to take herself away from the clutter of humanoid life. The chemicals in the air, the lights and the sounds were all very intoxicating but there were far too many people for her to comfortably feed her cravings. Fate was only so strong as to keep her in this alien and unknown section of the planet against her will, her hunger was far more dominant and satisfying from her perspective. Still, it was a nice diversion from the routine and she suspected that she'd be able to attack the coming day and her job with renewed vigor as a result of the change of scenery. With arms swaying in time with the soft thud of her boots losing itself in the din of activity, the distance between the combat medic and the station begins to close slowly. When being greeted from the side by Kalna, Draygo turns his attention away from Foerga and Lynae for a second as he returns the hello with a nod, "So far so good actually, hopefully that won't change though. Better check back in an hour to be sure." He cracks a small smile though he glances back to Lynae and Foerga, "So how about you, find any trouble lately?" "Cryptic cyphers pegs it about right." Foerga agrees, nodding her head slowly, green eyes agleam. Tucking her hands into her front pockets, she rocks back and forth on her heels, a roguish grin slowly slipping across her lips. Getting a far off cast, she drawls out, "Picture it, a dim room with comsystems all aglitter with their beauteous lights, a console slowly drawing out the precise dots of light and glimmering into a holoimage capturing the senses with delight." she paints the picture out slowly, then leans forward slightly and chuckles, "And, of course, the machine that goes 'ping'... we couldn't miss out on that!" she adds, then looks over at Draygo as he speaks. "My light and fancy, he speaks!" "Hands up, don't move.", just as that is being said, Gustaf finds himself almost lifted straight off the ground by the powerful suddenly wrapped around his neck. It is a testament to the skills of the big man now holding a weapon to Gus' temple that he was able to move so quietly. "This is how we'll do it. You don't do squat, you don't move, you don't talk. This fellow here and I will take a walk back to the spaceport where he'll tell me where he stashed something he stole from us." A decidedly soft is the one that gives those commands, the big man already beginning to back out through the crowd with his bounty safely held by the neck. "Oh, I don't travel with the doc, so-" Kalna begins, when a few intensely spoken words cut through her words, and she lets out a heavy sigh. "But the moment that I do..." she mutters, as she begins to turn towards the sound of that voice, turning her body so the man's view of her right hip and arm is obscured by Draygo's body. Blaster to the temple, great. Where are the Jedi when you /really/ need them...? Galatea would have to be blind to not notice the commotion and she does. Casting an idle glance over her shoulder she eyes the individual's involved briefly before dismissing the whole situation as something not having any bearing on her reality. She didn't know any of the parties nor was she duty bound to intervene. Violence was commonplace and while she was part of the military, she didn't believe it was her place to police the entire planet - specifically when she wasn't being paid to do so. Shrugging it off mentally, the combat medic slides off to the side and rests her back up against a non-descript wall safely at a distance. Still, the prospect of a scuffle excited Galatea to some degree regardless of her melancholy response leaving some value in sticking around. There was no harm in watching, right? Looking to her left again, Ranma sighs, "Yes I know. I'm gonna get shot again if I get involved. You can stop babying me. Hell, you've been dead for almost 8 years now. Leave me be." She shakes her head and flicks both of wrists subtly causing a pair of knives to drop into her hands, since she wasn't wearing her uniform, she had left her side-arm in her locker. She turns to look the assailant directly in the eyes and takes a step forward, "Tell me what he stole from you and perhaps we can come to some kind of arrangement that doesn't involve spilling blood." She tilts her head to the side, an almost giddy look in her eyes and she stares him down. Perhaps she had lost some of her common sense in recent events, "And I'm not referring to my own." When the threatening words are heard, Draygo's relaxed demeanor quickly snaps to something entirely opposite. Tensing up, he quickly reaches into his vest and pulls out both blaster pistols, gripping one firmly in each hand while he interposes himself between Lynae and the voice who has a hostage in hand. "Doc, get behind me and keep your head down." The no nonsense tone is evident as Draygo tries to determine what the situation is, the First Lady's safety being his primary concern. "Oh, there's no debating it missy.", the big man answers as he tries his best at backing away all the while keeping his eyes wide open to any potential threats. For the time being, it means hiding his bulky frame as best as possible behind Gustaf's body should any fire be directed at him from the group before them. "This fellow's coming with me or no one is leaving here in one piece, several pieces, most likely." And somehow, a grenade is handed off from his blaster hand to the one holding Gustaf. "This here's what they call a thermal. You might think I'm bluffing, but please understand that a rather gruesome death awaits me if I don't bring him back to my boss. So you can understand that a thermal would be a better choice than a slow, torturous death." Lynae's right hand is reaching for the comlink at her side while her left hand rests on the blaster that's angled for a cross draw over her right hip. She draws the blaster in a smooth quiet motion while lifting the comlink to open the channel to send word back to her ship that something squirrely is happening (again) on planet. She only needs to speak a few words and drops the volume down on her end of the link, leaving it open so that her ship keeps the link open. No, she isn't going to duck and hide - it's not in her nature. She does, yes, step behind Draygo, but only enough so that she can aim from behind him and she speaks again with, "But of course," to Draygo and then to Foerga, "I'll try not to step on your toes," she promises aloud. Taking another step forward, her head still tilted to the side, Ranma laughs, "Oh. I don't think you're bluffing. I know you are." She steps forward again keeping pace with the man, "And something tells me that this supposed stolen property, doesn't belong to your boss at all." She streightens her neck out and stares dead into the man's eyes, "Or else it would have been reported to the authorities. So. You can put away the detonator and we can talk about this. Or. You can be made to put it down." "Couldn't have stepped into a bigger hornet's nest," Kalna mutters quietly with some amusement, her own blaster sliding out of its holster. With the number of armed men and women facing him, the armed lunatic is probably starting to realize that he couldn't have picked a /worse/ time to spring on his prey. "Have you ever heard of the 'opportune moment'?" she asks the man a bit mockingly. Draygo doesn't seem to mind when the two women use him as human cover, probably due to the fact that he is wearing something a little more protective and that he's use to taking the role of bodyguard. The two pistols in the Corellian's hands are now aimed at the kidnapper though his eyes widen momentarily when the thug produces a thermal detonator. Turning his head slightly so a whisper can be given to Foerga and Lynae, Draygo never takes his gaze off of the kidnapper, "I suggest you two find some cover that is a little farther away, if this loon accidently triggers the Tee-Dee, it could get messy..." Ah the foolhardy of the galaxy, why must he always run into them? They tend to make his work much more dangerous than it needs to be, "I would follow his advice, he is not bluffing and this is none of your business.", Gustaf's words might be drowned out just then as a loud gasp and no few cries go through the nearby crowd as rather calmly Gustaf's assailants activates the grenade. Pulling the pin might be a good way of putting it, other than the fact that there is no pin to be pulled. "I'd rather not die, but if I have to, going quick is the best choice.", the big man says to those before him, continuing to back away. His target is made clear when a small speeder is seen parked some distance away. Looking down at the detonator, Ranma lets out a slight sigh and shakes her head. She looks over her left shoulder again before looking back at the thug and grinning widely, "You should have taken the deal." As the shot rings out, she doesn't think twice before twisting her body weight slightly and bringing the knife in her right hand upwards to drag the blade across the wrist of the hand holding onto the thermal detonator. Her intent is obvious, disable the hand then the bomb. It's a gamble, but then the goon had rolled the dice the moment he had pulled out the detonator. "Taken the words right out of my mouth," Kalna agrees, likewise aiming her own blaster towards the speeder, and coming out from behind Draygo where Foerga and Lynae were taking refuge. She takes a few shots at it, aiming for key elements such as the stabilizers and steering elements of the vehicle. She may not know a lot about fixing vehicles, but she knew what sort of damage made them undriveable. When the blaster shot rings out next to him, Draygo muffles a curse as the fight begins. Seeing that he has no shot on the kidnapper and that someone was already going after the thug in close quarters, the Corellian changes his target to the speeder as well, aiming for the engine block as he discharges both of his pistols, sending out bolts of energy at the idle vehicle. "Whatever happens is on your head.", the kidnapper yells as he breaks at a dead run leftwards and into the crowd, though it is quick to part before a man armed with a blaster. Thankfully, he just put the safety back onto the grenade just as he was preparing to bolt away when Ranma's knife struck him. And though there is a large gash on his hand and his most potent weapon is gone, the kidnapper does not seem too slowed down by it. Gustaf is dragged behind him, though given that the man has been knocked out cold when the blaster's grip struck him on the back of his head, it's more a question of his unconscious body being hoisted up as the fellow runs. Quite undignified, but the native of Vandelhelm is out cold so that's that. Lynae doesn't alter her aim, at first, still firing away at the get-away vehicle even as Draygo and Kalna add their weapons fire to hers. She's certain that this really is the perview of the New Alderaan police.. but until they get here, she's more than happy to help out. Or to just make things more challenging. Reaching down, Ranma picks up the deactivated detonator. Grinning a bit she tosses the device over to Draygo and grins, "In coming big guy." Reaching up she activates the comlink attached to the collar of her jacket, "Command. Kidnapping in progress in the Belleau-a-Lir district of the city. Assailant is fleeing on foot with an unconscious victim. You may want to notify the local police precinct." She looks in the direction that the kidnapper fled, but doesn't follow immediately. This Gustaf fellow is seriously going to owe Kalna. Owe her a /drink/ at the very least. She ceases fire, holding her blaster near her head, pointed up towards the sky, as she runs after the retreating man. Shouldn't be too hard to keep up with him, right? He's hauling dead-weight along with him... When the mini-thermal nuclear device is thrown at Draygo, he yelps out, "What! I'm not a demolitionist!" As the shiny, spherical bomb reaches the surprised and panicked Corellian, especially since he has no free hands due to the fact he's holding his pistols, the detonator is juggled, bouncing from left to right and back to the left handle of his blaster before he is able to clutch it against his midsection like a football. Only then does he notice that it has been deactivated. "Oh Emperor's black bones." With one arm clutching the grenade, Draygo holsters his other pistol so he can handle the hot package with more care, "I swear..." He opens a pocket in his vest, then tucks it away for safe keeping for now. "Want me to keep an eye on that for you?" Lynae asks, having watched the juggling act from just beside Draygo. "I've carried a few of those in my time.. but I'm not an expert either," she says in a rather dry and remarkably calm voice. Shutting off the comlink, Ranma laughs quietly as she turns to face Draygo, "Neither am I. That's why I gave it to you. I'd probably accidentally set it off." She winks at Lynae and giggles softly under her breath before looking back in the direction the man had fled in. Run after them, or 'borrow' one of the passing speeder-bikes to chase him down. Before securing the pocket with the thermal detonator, Draygo arches a brow at Lynae and hesitates, as if trying to decide whether it's a good idea or bad one to give the First Lady another dangerous toy to play with. "Very well, Doc. But you have to promise not to throw it at the first bad guy you see... I rather not have half the city fall on our heads." He says rather dryly before removing the explosive from his pocket before handing it gingerly over to Lynae. Lynae accepts the explosive, then calmly tucks it into one of her pockets, and manages not to remark about the other such explosives she has been known to carry about. "My word is given," she says solemnly. "Now, are we going to help keep the bad guy from getting away, or are we going to stand back and watch the police bungle it?" Just as expected, the speeder does eventually blow up, a rather big explosion too though there were none left close enough to be grievously injured. Unfortunately, for Gustaf's would-be rescuers anyway, the crowd does scatter impeding any chase of the man, though it also doesn't much help him as well as he's slowed down. Just then, Gustaf comes to, and though it takes him some time to get his spirits about him, he is soon trying to free himself. A punch aimed at the back of his assailant's kidneys is enough to stop the man outright as is the second punch that follows. Of course, it is inevitable that the kidnapper would toss Gustaf away, his blaster beginning to be trained on him. "Now...", a wheezing breath taken then, "you get to lose a leg idiot." "Everyone, /DOWN/!" Kalna roars in a commanding voice, firing once into the air, before training her blaster on the man she sees about to open fire. Her thumb fires for the control to switch it over to stun, just in case some idiot does end up in the way of her shot, but she isn't quite sure if she gets it or not when she opens fire on the man, hoping to incapacitate but not kill. She wants him for questioning. Slowly Ranma follows after Kalna, the kidnapper and his unconscious target. She doesn't run, but instead trots though the crowd as best she can. Stowing both of her knives back up her sleeves, she pushes and shoves her way through the crowd. Not sure what she is going to be able to do once she does catch up, not having her blaster. But she'll cross that bridge when she comes to it. Lynae follows instructions, instinct kicking in long before her brain can catch up The shouted word DOWN makes her crouch down instinctively, toggling the safety on her blaster in the process so that it doesn't accidentally go off in the process. The man is just aware enough of his surroundings that he is crouching when Kalna's blaster is fired, the usn shot instead of taking him straight into the chest instead hitting one of his shoulders. And that, coupled with his Wookie-te physique is enough to allow him to keep standing, or at least awake as he drops to his knees. Just then, Ranma is seen and the pilot is pounced on, though in truth that just means he just tries to weep her legs underneath him before throwing himself on her, should it work, intent on choking her out before he has to deal with whatever other enemies there are. "OFF her!" Kalna growls out angrily, moving towards the man quickly, her dominant hand aiming a blow from the butt of her blaster at his head, while her left hand pulls out rodian dagger. She has no more qualms about stabbing the man than she had about shooting. "If you have any sort of common sense, you will surrender," she advises in that same, angry growl. The man does not seem to be listening, and though he frees one of his hands, the pressure on Ranma's neck does not lessen enough. Gustaf, now fully in control of himself once more, stands up slowly and though a moment is taken to dust himself off, he is soon enough walking calmly towards the scene of the commotion. A knife is retrieved from his belt and once within reach, rather unceremoniously too, it is slammed down into his would-be kidnapper's right shoulder. The thing nearly buried to the hilt into the as-of-yet-unnamed man who simply slumps backward, unconscious when the shock of being stabbed and the stun bolt received not too long ago proves too strong to tolerate. "That should take care of him.", Gustaf says calmly, a handkerchief retrieved to clean away whatever blood splattered on his hand. Lynae is lifting her head as more sounds of struggle reach her. She cautiously regains her feet just in time to see the red-haired Pilot attacked and then, a few heart beats later, to see the intended Kidnapee stick a knife into the kidnappers right shoulder. "Hm," is the only sound she makes as she checks over her weaponry and dusts herself off. Coughing a bit, and slowly managing to catch her breath as her vision begins to return and the stars fade, Ranma just lays on the ground. When she is able to speak, she turns her head to look towards Gustaf and shakes her head, "Next time I see you walking down the street, I'm going the oposite direction without even acknowledging you." She grins and winks as she starts to sit up. Kalna offers Ranma a hand-up when she looks ready, offering the woman a wry smile. "You alright? Looks like you got caught between two trouble magnets... The good doctor, and our good mystery-man here. Certainly an unfortunate occurance, any day." Glancing down at the unconcious would-be kidnapped her adds in a quiet murmur, "Where the hell are the authorities?" Speaking of the devil, the first of them are to be seen with several aereospeeders zooming into the area and landing not too far even as the bulk of them get over here. "Thank you for your help, I'm sorry if you got injured getting involved in this.", which is just another way, to him at least, that they have only themselves to blame, "I'll be on my way now." and with a last look at his knife, he can't take it back now after all, Gustaf begins to back away hoping to disappear into the crowd soon enough and without getting stopped. Lynae tilts her head towards Draygo and says, "You know, someone needs to scoop that man up and start asking questions. Any man that draws this kind of attention is bound to keep finding attention centered on him." Ranma lets out a soft laugh as she accepts the offered hand and gets up to her feet and dusts off her pants, "Seems lately trouble just knows right where I am, regardless of the company I keep." She laughs a bit more before giving Kalna a nod of her head and a quiet, "Thank you." She ignores Gustaf as she watches the authorities start to arrive and shakes her head, "Seems they like the fashionably late entrances." "Ohhhh no you don't!" Kalna exclaims with a laugh, reaching out in an attempt to grab the man by the shirt color. "You, trouble-magnet, owe a few people a bit of an explination, I would think. Why don't we all go sit down, grab a caf... Watch you squirm and try to wiggle your way out of saying anything enlightening. Should be good times!" Lynae settles her blaster in place, pats one hand over the explosive tucked into one of her pockets, then walks forward and comes to stand beside Ranma while Kalna attempts to detain the troublesome-tourist. "Oh I quite agree. Let's sit him down and make him talk," the last remark is said with a rather intent gleam in her eyes. Gustaf seems to consider his options for some time before he simply shrugs and heads to a nearby bistro, onlookers beginning to crowd its outside tables now that the terror has subsided and turned into curiousity. Kalna, Lynae and Ranma as well as entourage(and Draygo when he returns) are motionned to join him at the large table he chooses though he is quiet and rather still until they join im. "What do you want to know? Keeping in mind that I'm not paying." Ranma nods her head, "If he doesn't talk willingly." She flicks her wrist and lets one of the knives fall into the palm of her hand, "There's always ways to make people talk." She turns to Lynae and offers the woman a wink before putting the knife away again, "Kidding." As the man walks over towards a table, she shrugs her shoulders and follows, "Guess we don't need to make him talk." "There goes half the fun," Kalna murmurs in response to Ranma, humor coloring her voice as she walks with her friends towards the table Gustaf had chosen. She slips into a seat with him, resting her elbows on the table and her chin in her hands. "We ordering a round of cafs? I think that might be in order." And putting it all on Lynae's tab, perhaps? She's the First Lady! She can afford it! Lynae is somewhat versed in the art of making people talk, and she gives the man a rather long look as she takes a seat with Draygo alongside her. "I'll take care of the tab," she confirms with a subtle nod. "Who are you? where do you come from? Why do these men want you so stubbornly? Lie to me and I will find more interesting ways of making you talk." "I am Gustaf Heram and I am from Vandelhelm.", the man replies, those questions being the only one addressed to him. The next part of his answer is delayed by a waiter's arrival, though the Duro's attention is distracted by the police cordon being set up nearby. When whatever is ordered along with Gustaf's glass of water is written down, the waiter heads away before Gustaf speaks away. "As you helped me twice and I owe you, I will say this but once. I do not take kindly to threats." "And we don't take kindly to the sheer amount of violence that follows in your wake. If more is coming after you, you owe the people here - at the very LEAST - the courtesy of letting them know that more danger is on the way," Lynae says in an equally blunt tone of voice. "And that wasn't a threat." "The doctor does not deal in threats," Kalna confirms firmly, as her gaze studies Gustaf curiously. "I, too, would know what these men want from you and what trouble you have brought to my home. Especially as it seems to continually involve those I consider friends." Not to mention herself. "I can guarantee you that it is in your best interest to be on /good/ terms with the people currently seated at this table. And it would be very inadvisable to end this conversation on poor terms." "If you say so.", and for a moment, Gustaf turns to look at the authorities' work some metres beyond, it is a testatement to a crowd's ability to jumble every facts of an event no matter how recent that he oes not worry about being pointed out. "I took some...almost three million credits from them. Them being the Vandelhelm Cooperation Syndicate, a criminal organization though one that is much more organized and professional than others." Finally, he turns to look back at Kalna, observing the woman in silence before he snickers. "They want their money back and I have no intention of giving it to them, it is already planned for something else you see." Lynae arches one eyebrow at Gustaf then shakes her head slowly, "Three million credits is worth getting killed for?" "Better have something good in mind for that money," she murmurs quietly in agreement with Lynae. "And if you use it to cause more trouble in this city," she adds, a threating tone in her voice. Gustaf has, thus far, largely seemed to be a man interested only in protecting himself. "I plan on using it to buy as many weapons and defences as I can and ship it all back to Vandelhelm so that I can free my people from the Empire.", the rather ridiculous, and potentially dangerous, statement given with a certain ir of banality. Though on the New Republic's capital, wishing to take revenge on the Empire was not much, having that much money, if Gustaf is to be believed, is something else altogether. "Would you happen to know where I can buy weapons and armour in such quantities?" Lynae stares at Gustaf for a long silent moment. "You stole money from a criminal syndicate in order to buy weapons to smuggle them somehow into your home planet to use them to fight the Empire off?" Kalna's expression softens, sympathy coloring her features, though a determined light gleams in her eye. "I may be able to find those who can help," she offers in a quiet voice. As soon as she can contact her superiors, that is. With three million credits, and a little training, Gustaf could possibly light quite the uncomfortable fire under the Empire's foot. "Yes, is there something wrong with that?", a tad bit efensive he ounds, but after a moment, Gustaf shrugs once more. "Anyway, that money is the rightful property of the people of Vandelhelm given that it was stolen or extorted from them. It is only well that it assists in freeing them." Gustaf seems to hesitate for a moment before continuing, "Three million credits is nothing though. A single Star Destroyer or a single legion, and no matter what headway we make, Vandelhelm will still be crushed once more under the Empire's boot. No, I came here hoping to acquire contacts who would be able to procure those items, and also, and more importantly, the Republic's head...I don't know whether it gave up and forgot about us, but there are those of us still fighting." Thankfully, after that mini-speech, there is nothing quite as good as a glass of fresh water, delivered along with their other orders just as Gustaf finishes answering, to refresh oneself with. Lynae shakes her head, curls her hands around the mug of caf then wrinkles her nose at the smell and abruptly pushes the cup away. Kalna seems to have no such adverse reaction to her caf, as she sips at it while she mulls over his words. "Senator Alistair Al'dira," she advises him. Reaching into a pocket she pulls out a thin wallet she carries, and removes one of the senator's cards. Why she carries those around are anyone's guess... She uses a pen to scrawl a hasty personal note on it, before sliding it across to Gustaf. "And I may be able to find you a few more contacts, as well." "Contacts...are you connected to the government perhaps, can you get me an audience with this Senator of yours?", what luck it would be to run into somebody able to sit him down with a senator so soon after his arrival. Almost worth people trying to shoot him or blow him up into smithereens and worse. "You do not agree with my plan, Doctor?", the title remembered from Kalna's earlier use. "It's not that," Lynae says, then pushes the cup of caf even further away, "bad brew, I think," she says and lifts one hand to wave towards the waiter and asks him to take it away and to bring her a cup of tea instead. "It's not that. It's that.. I see your objective. I do. And, on the whole, it's an admirable one. You've no tactical training, though, I'm guessing? no military schooling? do you have links or contacts on the inside that are waiting for you to bring back weaponry? Do you have a plan, or .. were you thinking to bring the weapons back and that it would be enough to do the trick?" Kalna taps the note she had written on the card, then slides it over towards the man. "You'll get in to see the senator. Just give that to his receptionist," she promises him, with no explination of how she can make such guarantees. "The doctor raises excellent points," she adds. The sorts of things that Gustaf will be grilled at, in depth, if her superiors decide the man is worth pursuing and supporting. "I am Gustaf Heram, Margrave of the Neustram Frontier of Vandelhelm.", the man states quietly, though after a moment, and given that it should not be a name too familiar to some, he is quick to elaborate on that. "For a long time, my family has been tasked with the protection of the venerated Ones...the descendants of the original two founding families for my world. I have failed in that task. While I have fallen on hard times, my title has enough respect that if I can back it up, a sizeable number might flock to my banner. That is in addition to those who are still loyal to my family." The note still on the table is taken and looked over before he slips it into his coat. Kalna leans forwards slightly, her gaze suddenly a little more intense. "Margrave Gustaf Heram of Vandelhelm?" she repeats, using her pen to jot a quick note for herself. Oh, people will /most certainly/ be interested in this... "Anyone of those loyal followers spring to mind who may have some sort of military experience...?" she asks, pen still posed. "Protecting does entail some military experience, Miss. I had a high position within the local defence forces though I know of many more who commanded our troops and what space assets we had. Some of them I can vouch for on my life, others deserve little more than a dagger for what they have done to our people.", Gustaf replies between gulps of the water, the first real drink he's had in hours. "I see," Lynae finally says after holding her silence for so long. "So. You return, and those that are loyal will fall in line and unite under your banner and unite to fight off the Empire? How long have they been under the heel?" "Mmm," Kalna comments simply, as she studies the man, a satisfied smile growing across her features. More and more promising. She is definately going to have some fun. A shame she doesn't have her datapad with her, at the moment... there are definately things she wants to look up. She leaves Lynae to direct the line of questioning, for the moment. "We were among the first to fall in the Empire's resurgence since we fed many of the more important shipyards of the galaxy, particularly those at Fondor, some ores and alloys and other such items of great quality." Some years now, though that is more than enough for the Empire to establish a stranglehold on the world. "In truth, what should happen is that the New Republic should commit to assist our efforts, I will return and try to organize supporters and others who would lead in our rebellion. Once we have a sufficient base of personnel, we can send some out of Vandelhelm to be trained by your military and then send them back to hide in the mountains and train others of our people. It will, of course, depend on the Republic being committed to helping us." Yet another shrug from his part makes clear that he does not have many high expectations on this part. "If that does not happen, I will buy my weapons, bring my people somewhere safe to train and then go into the mountains and start small. If the Republic is not willing to help us, I will regret that, but it will not stop me." Lynae starts to say something, and then stops. She is not a member of the Republic Military. She is not a member of a military insurgency unit. As first lady of Caspar she can't voice any of the half dozen things that leap to mind, let alone back up any of those ideas with manpower, weaponry or soldiers. She curls one hand around the cup of tea and looks down into it for a moment. Kalna's smirk grows slightly at the man's assumption, thought she doesn't make any attempt to correct it. If the doc doesn't, no reason she should. "The senator's the best place for you to start your inquiries," she promises him. "And I'll start making a few of my own, on your half. Should be able to rustle up something, but I'm making no promises." At the least, she figures, she should be able to secure permission to go, herself, to help with training a insurgency force. "Alright then, I would appreciate it if you can accompany me on that meeting, as an...intermediary of sorts.", and so that he can have her within reach should this be prove to be the trap some part of him suspects it to be. "I will, of course, work around your schedule." With that, Gustaf turns back to the Doctor, looking at her in silence for a moment with an arched brow. "Something the matter?" Lynae shakes her head, "No, not at all. You've merely arrived at a rather interesting time, that's all. How do you intend to deal with the hired thugs who will continue to come after you? Or did I miss that part in your explanation?" Kalna shrugs her shoulders at the man's words, before speaking in a wry tone. "I tend to be busy, as does the Senator. I hardly ever see him. But I will contact the man and see if we can coordinate a time in the near future for a meeting. How will I contact you to let you know what that time is?" she asks. "I was planning on gathering up, once I return home, enough men and strike directly against the VCS in one quick operation. Take over its armouries, its ships and its assets. After all that they have done, in particular allowing the Empire to take over the world easily by infiltrating our defence forces, they deserve much worse." As for Kalna, her question is pondered over for a moment before Gustaf answers, "I am staying in the Sandman, contact its reception and ask for Solo Niub.", his smile explained away by the inside joke only a native of Vandelhelm or one familiar with its history would understand. "Convince the heads of the Republic Military to sign off on the idea, and you'll find capable and able bodied men and women who will give you the help that you need," Lynae says quietly. "We are.. good neighbors with the Republic. If they sign on, we may be able to come along and lend a hand. Unofficially." Kalna taps her mug on the table twice in approval at Lynae's words, and takes a sip from its contents again before speaking. "Solo Niub. Check." She considers Lynae's words for a moment before she adds, "If the politicians and others who make the decisions sign on..." she murmurs softly, "Rasi could likely recommend some suitable 'able bodied' men and woman to help." "And you would be who precisely, can you get me a meeting with those heads you speak of? If they are anything like what they claim to be, there is hope yet.", the arrogance in his voice, despite his best efforts to conceal it, is strongest when he says that. But, given his current circumstances, there are the faint traces of humility within him, if for no other reason than because of the clothes he wears. After all, with three million in the bank, the least some people would do is get a better wardrobe. "Rasi? As I said, if you can get me in with those people, I will do my best to convince them. As for the weapons, do you know some non-military company I can get it from? After all, the sudden presence of military-grade weapons on Vandelhelm would raise the suspicions of even the blindest of local Imperial bureaucrats." "I..... yes," Lynae says then continues. "A fellow named Lanze, for one. The another fellow by the name of Malif. I'd aim at the latter, first, as he has nearly every type of weapon in existence. The former will be easier to find and less angsty to deal with, but may not have the best prices." "I can help see to Lanze offering a fair price," Kalna murmurs softly. Though that she would have to do it through an intermediary... such as Rasi. Lanze Beviin had no idea who Kalna Vessan or Brin Harper was. "I believe Daana Roon may be able to help with weapons as well. And I could speak to her in regards to pricing as well. And if I am not mistaken, the Angry Rancor /is/ in orbit..." The names are committed to memory quickly enough, Gustaf repeating each of them softly several times to make sure he has them right before moving on. "Very well, I will count on your help Miss, Doctor if I am to see Vandelhelm once freed to pursue its own destiny free of foreign domination. I will be at the Sandman, Solo Niub.", with that, the man stands, his glass of water having long ago been emptied. "Thank you for your help, again.", a sharp bow is offered, and without another word Gustaf is on his way towards disappearing into the crowd and presumably back to the Sandman.